


no stars tonight

by pseudocordelia



Series: dedue week 2020 [3]
Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Dedue Week (Fire Emblem), Getting Together, Implied Sexual Content, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-09
Updated: 2020-01-09
Packaged: 2021-02-27 03:26:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,787
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22180264
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pseudocordelia/pseuds/pseudocordelia
Summary: Ashe was approaching him. He was smiling. Dedue spoke first.“I thought you would have been standing beside her.”“I did, too,” Ashe replied, “but I think there’s something else I want to do.”I wish you were.The words were thought but not spoken. Ashe had always said he wanted to be a knight, but now that the offer was there he refused it. A part of Dedue wanted Ashe to live in the castle with him. He couldn't complain, though. He hadn’t told Ashe how he felt and he didn't plan to. Dimitri was the only family he needed.-Dedue thinks about family.(For Dedue Week Day 4: Family.)
Relationships: Ashe Duran | Ashe Ubert/Dedue Molinaro, Dimitri Alexandre Blaiddyd & Dedue Molinaro, background Dimitri Alexandre Blaiddyd/Marianne von Edmund
Series: dedue week 2020 [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1592887
Comments: 8
Kudos: 89





	no stars tonight

Ingrid’s knighting ceremony was meant to be a celebration. It was the first rite Dimitri held as king and all of the former Blue Lions were in attendance. A feast was to be held afterward, for commoners and nobles alike to enjoy. 

Dedue found himself standing in a corner, just watching. Sylvain and Felix, now known to most as Margrave Gautier and Lord Fraldarius, were bickering over something. Mercedes had pulled Ingrid into a waltz, whilst Annette stood next to Dimitri by the dessert table, eating cake. Ashe was…

Ashe was approaching him. He was smiling. Dedue spoke first.

“I thought you would have been standing beside her.”

“I did, too,” Ashe replied, “But I think there’s something else I want to do.”

_ I wish you were. _ The words were thought but not spoken. Ashe had always said he wanted to be a knight, but now that the offer was there he refused it. A part of Dedue wanted Ashe to live in the castle with him. He couldn't complain, though. He hadn’t told Ashe how he felt and he didn't plan to. Dimitri was the only family he needed.

Another part of Dedue was proud of Ashe, for taking his own path.

“And what is that?”   
“You’ll see!”

* * *

Dedue hadn't seen Ashe since then, but they exchanged letters. He couldn't make it to the grand opening: Dimitri was making an official public outing that day. But he had tonight off. Ashe knew he was coming. “ _ I can’t wait!”  _ He wrote in his letters, again and again.

Now that he was there, though, the freshly painted lobby was empty. Dedue found himself debating whether or not to ring the bell when a young girl gently opened the hallway door. 

Ah. He had heard so much about her.

"Are you Dedue?" she asked.

"Yes, I am," he leant down a bit to reach her eye level before offering his hand. "And you are?"

"I'm Ashe's little sister!" she puffed her chest out proudly as she shook his hand almost dramatically. Dedue let out a small chuckle. Freckles dotted her nose line, but with her silver hair tied up in bunches like that, she almost looked like his own sister. 

"Do you have a name, Ashe's little sister?"

She looked up at him for a long few moments. The door behind her was slowly opening. "Nope!" she declared before scurrying out of the room, ducking under Ashe’s arms. His hair had gotten longer and was tied in a low ponytail.

He sighed. “I’m sorry if she pestered you too much.” Dedue tried not to make his smile too obvious.

"She did not. It's alright."

“That's surprising. She can be a bit of a handful sometimes. Her name’s Ivy."

“...she looks like you.”  _ Not like my sister.  _

“Really? I don't remember my mother too well… but I think she takes after her more than I do.” Ashe almost seemed astonished. Dedue wanted to touch his shoulder, to tell him that there was no reason to frown, but Ashe faked a smile before he could. “Anyway!” he said, gently grabbing Dedue’s hand and leading him down the hallway and up the stairs. “She should be setting the table now.”

(Sitting at their dinner table, Dedue found himself feeling like he was amongst a family. Whenever Dimitri insisted Dedue took a day off, he found himself coming back. It was a home away from home. 

His feelings toward Ashe didn't change. They only deepened.) 

* * *

When Ingrid left the castle, Dedue wasn’t expecting her to bring back Raphael of all people. He was even more surprised to know that his little sister had moved in as well. She was only thirteen years old. 

Because of this, he found himself hesitant in front of Ingrid’s doorway. She had been acting less formal of late. Was he meant to tell her that “his Highness requested an audience” or “Dimitri wants to speak to you”? 

  
When he knocked, however, the person to answer was not Ingrid. Raphael’s figure took up the entire doorway. “Hey, Dedue!” he beamed. “I haven’t seen you for a long time. How’s it going?”

“I am well,” Dedue replied. He was never sure how to react to Raphael’s candor. “May I speak to Ingrid?”

“Of course!” Raphael moved out of the way. What Dedue saw shouldn’t have made him sad.   
  
But Ingrid was sitting in front of her vanity, a hairpin between her lips and her hands entangled in the blonde hair of the younger girl in her lap. He could only assume that the girl was Maya. Her skin was just a tad bit darker than Raphael’s and her hair was curlier than his.

Dedue did not want to look. The scene felt all too familiar. 

When his sister died, she was Maya’s age. Dedue was sure of it.

“His Highness has requested an audience with you, Ingrid,” was all he said before leaving. 

Raphael told him to wait. He did not listen.

* * *

“Raphael’s been bringing his little sister here!” Ashe said the next time Dedue was over for dinner. The noise downstairs was louder this time. More people had been frequenting the inn. “Do you see much of her around the castle?”

Dedue wasn’t sure. He tried not to think about that girl. She brought back memories that Dedue had intentionally buried.

“...No,” was all he replied.

* * *

_ Knight of Gaspard _ . Dedue had never seen a play before, but the Mittelfrank Opera Company was putting on a show for King Dimitri’s official visit. Despite the front row seat, he had no idea what was going on. He was pretty sure that Dorothea was meant to be a commoner who adored knights from the little amount of High Adrestian he understood. The fact that the whole thing was sung didn't help either. He at least knew her costar was a knight from his costuming.

The final act finally made its way to the end.

“For I am but a common maiden!” Dorothea sang as she dramatically waltzed into the knight’s arms. “This is not to be!”

“Oh, but a man would be a fool not to take you as his queen.”

And then they kissed and the curtain closed. The crowd erupted into a standing ovation. Dedue was confused, but Dimitri stood and clapped, so Dedue did as well. Ashe probably would’ve enjoyed something like this.

Afterwards, he accompanied Dimitri to Dorothea’s orphanage. A large donation was made, but what Dedue remembered the most was the way children clung to Dorothea’s skirt. It’s just like the way Ashe smiled at his siblings and that tender moment between Ingrid and Maya.

  
Why did he keep on getting reminded of the past? 

* * *

"I'd love to go to Enbarr!" Ashe declared at their next dinner. Dedue wondered if the invasion hadn't counted. "What was the opera you saw about?"

_ A commoner and a knight working for the king unsure if they can be together,  _ Dedue thought. _ Like us. _

"I did not have much of an idea," he said instead. He wasn't lying. "It was confusing."

* * *

When Dedue was told he was needed in Dimitri’s quarters, he made his way down the hall immediately. However, when he opened the door - Dimitri had told him time and time again he needn’t knock - he did not expect Dimitri to look so  _ ecstatic _ .

“Oh, Dedue!” he said, bringing over a tray of tea. “You simply have to sit down, I have some excellent news.”

Dedue seated himself on the loveseat in front of Dimitri’s desk. Dimitri looked awfully giddy as laid the tray down, sitting across from him.

“Marianne is expecting!” he announced. “I just had to let you be the first one to know.” 

“That is wonderful news, Your Highness.” Dedue smiled, just enough so that Dimitri could see, before taking a sip of his tea. Ever since he told Dimitri that cinnamon was his favourite, he hadn’t been served anything else by him.

Dimitri, however, pouted a little. “That’s not my name. I had expected you to be a bit happier!”

“My apologies, Dimitri.” 

"...is something the matter?” 

Gods. He could see right through him. Dedue took another long sip of his tea before letting out a sigh. If he didn’t tell Dimitri right away, he’d prod it out of him anyway.

“I can’t remember my sister’s name,” was all he said.

“Ah.” Dimitri stared into the distance for a moment, thinking. “I can request access to Duscur’s archives for you, but I suppose this isn’t about that… I miss my family, too. But now I have you and Marianne and a child on the way. I do not think things can ever be the same, but I have found happiness again.” 

Dedue did not know how to respond. Dimitri just flashed a grin at him.

“Do you think my other advisors will let my child call you Uncle Dedue?”

* * *

The day Duscur officially became an autonomous state, Ashe had personally delivered a letter to the castle.  _ You should come over _ was all it said - unless Ashe’s signature was to be taken into account. 

It had been the same as all of their other dinners together. Ivy teased her brothers, the food was delicious and he felt welcome. Yet afterward, as Ashe’s siblings made their way to bed, Ashe gently touched Dedue’s arm. He looked up at him, almost pleadingly. 

“Would you like to stay the night?” he asked.

Dedue was confused. “Which room would I stay in?” The inn had grown popular enough that bookings had to be made in advance. Surely Ashe wouldn’t have reserved a room for him.   
“...mine.”

Oh. His voice was barely a whisper. His feelings toward Ashe never changed. There were so many things he wanted to say.  _ I like you too. I love you. I’m sorry.  _

_ I want to start a family with you.  _

He just nodded instead. 

Ashe was so gentle with him. 

* * *

(Though the innocence of the Duscur people was proven, prejudice against them still lingered in the Kingdom capital. For this reason, Ashe refused a knighthood when it was offered to him, and chose instead to open an inn that specialized in Duscur cuisine. Dedue began to frequent the place on breaks from his duty as the king's vassal, and over time, imparted to Ashe his culinary wisdom. As the inn gained popularity, the people of the Kingdom began finally to see the Duscur people in a positive light. This led to a reconciliation between the two cultures that came rather more quickly than expected.

Soon afterward, Dedue announced his resignation and began to live with Ashe. The many orphans the pair took in would go on to become some of the most well-regarded chefs in Fodlan.) 


End file.
